“As we’ve learned in Afghanistan, the misuse of firepower has a tremendously negative impact on our ability to succeed in our missions. When civilians are killed, it turns populations against us and it gives our opponents the opportunity to use it against us in the battle for hearts and minds,” said Mr. Staples in an interview with The Hill Times.

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Mr. Staples said that surveillance-only drones monitoring Canada’s coasts do not alarm the Rideau Institute. “There’s probably not a lot of difference between a plane that has a pilot and a plane that doesn’t have a pilot when it’s used for surveillance. In fact, we’ve suggested in the past that Arctic surveillance might be better handled by high altitude, long endurance unmanned aircraft,” Mr. Staples said. But there is another element to the JUSTAS program. The RCAF wants to equip drones with weapon technology.

Last year, in an appearance before the Senate Defence Committee, RCAF Commander Lt.-Gen. André Deschamps said that armed drones are a requirement of the Canadian Forces.

“Clearly, in foreign operations, during complex missions, like in Afghanistan or Libya, for example, the advantage of drones is that they remain in position for long periods of time and they see a lot. The capability for action is also very important being able to have a short- or medium-range weapon is very important. So the capability to be armed, if required, especially internationally, will be part of the needs identified for the drones,” said Lt.-Gen. Deschamps at a Feb. 27 meeting.

But Michael Skinner, a researcher with York University’s Centre for International Security Studies, said he is uneasy about Canada embracing the weaponization of UAVs.

“I’ve spent a considerable amount of time in northern Pakistan and Afghanistan and one of the first grievances people mention against the United States and the West, in general, are the drone attacks. They’re not as clean as politicians would like us to believe they are,” Mr. Skinner told The Hill Times in an interview.